This policy study explores origins of part 6.1 of "Bill 34" ("School Amendment Act, 2002") and its impacts on the institutional behaviour of two public school districts in British Columbia. Part 6.1 permits school districts to raise funds through for-profit school district business companies (SDBC). The analysis found several…

This is a preliminary survey of the laws and statutes that determine governance arrangements for higher education systems as well as individual institutions in 24 countries of Sub-Saharan Africa. Following an overview of recent higher education governance trends within Africa, it describes the current range of practice and most common approaches…

Against a shifting set of assessment preferences in the US regarding whether educational assessment should continue to be a states rights game or become a federally dominated undertaking, the publication of five first-rate analyses about England's national curriculum assessment (NCA) is particularly propitious. Taken together, these five papers…

In the last two decades, China's education has experienced significant transformations and restructuring on account of privatization and marketization. Unlike the Mao era when the state assumed the major responsibilities in financing and providing education, individuals and families have now to bear increasing financial burdens in paying for…

This article presents an overview of the e-learning in India. It describes the historical developments of e-learning and identifies major stakeholders and institutions that have initiated e-learning programs after the creation of the National Task Force on Information Technology and Software Development constituted by the Prime Minister of India…

Being a "student" has been and remains a highly desirable status for young people and their families in Kyrgyzstan. "Giving their children education" (dat detyam obrazovaniye)--meaning "higher education"--has become an imperative for many parents, even in a time of serious economic and social decline. The numbers of…

In partnership with the American Council on Education's Center for Policy Analysis, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and the State Higher Education Executive Officers, the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) has been working to advance the overarching goal of the Changing Direction project, which was to examine…

This article argues that system-wide excellence in student learning is attainable at reasonable cost, using education policies differing from conventional market-oriented reform strategies prevalent in many other countries. In this respect, Finland is an example of a nation that has developed from a remote agrarian/industrial state in the 1950s to…

The 2006 Education Act provided an entitlement for all 14 year-olds to take a specialist diploma from 2013. Despite concerns of many educationalists and politicians, the first diplomas will begin in September 2008. New Labour claims that the diplomas are innovative and challenging; however, this article argues that they exhibit many of the…

The United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition (SCN) is a forum where United Nations (UN) agencies, bilateral partners, and nongovernmental agencies meet to harmonize and coordinate nutrition policy and programs. This report reviews the positions taken regarding nutrition education throughout SCN publications, annual sessions, and…

Ohio substance abuse policies, discipline codes, and educational drug abuse prevention programs are reviewed. An effective substance abuse policy is an essential element in the school's efforts to deal with drug and alcohol use. In many U.S. schools, the use of alcohol and drugs interferes with the education process, and it appears that substance…

In 1997, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry implemented a change in its method of determining prevailing wage and benefit rates, resulting in a reduction in the legally required prevailing rates in many construction trades in much of the state. This report analyzes data to determine if this change in fact lowered the cost of public…

The book is about policy in the area of early years services and that phrase may need some clarification. For the most part, therefore, this book deals with nursery schools and classes and with services provided by full day care nurseries, pre-schools, creches, childminders, after-school clubs and holiday play schemes. This book begins with…

Schematizes developments in quality assurance in higher education by introducing a phase model of the effects of internal and external dynamics. Offers a policy analysis of the model illustrated with the example of contrasting developments in higher education and environmental policy in the Netherlands. Explores challenges for quality assurance in…

Examined the enactment and early implementation of remedial education policies in Massachusetts and Oklahoma. Findings suggested that efforts to end or restrict remediation are driven largely by status attainment concerns--the desire by policy makers and administrators to create "competitive advantage" for certain public higher education…